I Spy, You Spy is a new CBeebies show that brings the much loved game to life.
Each episode, lovable puppet Elsee invites little ones to pause, look closely and enjoy the world around them through the fun of I Spy.
But did you know there's more than one way to play the classic game?
Join speech and language therapist Asma Khanum and watch how Elsee and friends play 'I Hear', a game to help with children’s listening skills.
Asma: Listening is a key part of being a great communicator.
Children with good listening skills are able to join in conversations, follow instructions and connect with those around them.
And remember, you don't just have to play I spy, you can also play I hear with my little ear.
Elsie: I hear with my little ear Something that sounds like beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep.
Drea: Is it a car?
Elsie: It's not a car. It's the sound of a vehicle reversing. Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep.
Asma: Drea and Elsie are having loads of fun.
They're listening and they're pausing and they're listening again to talk about something in the environment. Let's take a look at this next clip where Amara is having loads of fun listening to sounds in the environment.
Elsie: I hear, with my little ear, something that sounds like baa, baa, baa, baa, baa.
It's the sound of the train horn. Baa, baa, baa, baa.
Asma: And that's the power of I hear.
It teaches children to focus, notice and engage their ears and their mind.
Let's take a look at this noisy bunch.
Elsie: Bing, ch, bing, ch, ch. It's the sound of the till. Bing, ch, bing, ch, ch.
Child 3*: wooosh whoosh whoosh. It's the sound of the wind turbine.
Asma: These guys were having so much fun.
And you know the best thing? They had no idea they were learning.
Remember, helping your child learn to listen is the best thing you can do to become a strong communicator.
Next time you're out and about, why don't you have a go at playing I hear with my little ear?
How 'I Hear' can help with learning
'I Hear' encourages children to think about the sounds they hear around them and stimulates their imagination as they search for the things making those sounds.
The game promotes taking turns whilst having fun, which supports conversation skills and social development.
Read more about different ways you can play I Spy effectively with your children.
Learning through listening
Learning to listen is really important in becoming a good communicator.
And the best part is, you can practise wherever you are! It doesn’t even have to feel like learning.
When you’re listening to the sound of trains, the sound of wind turbines working or even the sound of the cashier opening the till, you give children the chance to focus, notice and engage.
These are building blocks to being a happy and healthy communicator.
Other games to help with learning phonics
Here are just a few activities on the CBeebies Parenting website that are designed to help with early phonics learning.
